Devices, such as, conventional remote controllers, are widely used to remotely control appliances such as, televisions, Blu-ray players, DVD players, audio home theaters or air-conditioners. Typically, the remote controllers are associated with their respective appliances, and a user controls the appliance (e.g., turning on/off, or increasing/decreasing volume), by pressing pre-defined buttons on the remote controller. Recently, users are provided with an option to control multiple appliances with a single universal remote control (URC). However, prior to carrying out an operation with the URC, the user needs to associate the URC with the appliances. For example, the user may perform the association by programming the URC with unique codes of the respective appliances. That is, the user needs to have a priori knowledge about the appliances and the controls of the remote controller, in order to operate either the URC or the conventional remote controller.